BUTTE VALLEY — Just a couple of years removed from making deep runs through the CIF Northern California playoffs, some leading all the way to the state finals, three Butte County basketball powerhouses are back in the Northern Section championship game at the same time.

The Pleasant Valley High girls and boys teams in Division III and Durham High girls in Division V will all be vying for section titles on Friday at Butte College.

Since 2013, the teams have combined to win 12 section championships. The last time all three won at the same time came during the 2017-18 season, setting up for each team to survive and advance through multiple rounds of the NorCal playoffs.

The PV boys team, which will be looking for its third straight section championship, has defeated Foothill in each of the last two D-III title games. The 2018 team went on to claim a CIF D-III state title against Notre Dame and finish the season with a 32-2 mark.

That roster, made up entirely of juniors and seniors, didn’t have any holdovers for this season. In fact, the Vikings have just one senior in Jake Kremer, plus 10 juniors and two sophomores. Still, that didn’t keep the Vikings from setting lofty goals from the outset.

“At the beginning of the season we all wrote our goals down, and one of my goals was to get to the section championship,” Kremer said. “Because that’s the big stage, it’s fun to play there … It’s going to be tough, but we’ll give it everything we’ve got.”

PV head coach Tim Keating had slightly tempered expectations. He expected the team to be competitive, but also knew teams like Foothill and Chico were returning with more experience than PV.

The Vikings earned the No. 3 seed for the section playoffs, finishing behind Foothill and Chico. After knocking off Las Plumas in the opening round, the Vikings (18-12) defeated their crosstown rival on the Panthers’ home court Wednesday night to draw Foothill in the title game. The Cougars (25-4) won both regular-season meetings.

“I didn’t expect it with this team. I knew we would compete, I really did,” Keating said. “Then two weeks ago I was like, ‘Uh oh,’ it’s going to be a tough second-round no matter what we do. This is icing on the cake. The kids are happy (and) they’re motivated.”

The PV girls captured four straight section titles from 2015 to 2018, the last of which PV followed with four straight wins in the NorCal playoffs, before the Vikings season ended in a CIF D-II state final loss to Redondo Union.

“Some girls will play their whole high school career and never get to a section title (game),” PV head coach Bob Paddock said.

As freshmen then, Christiane Carlisle, Shaley Vieg and Cassidy King were called up to varsity for the Vikings’ postseason push. Now juniors, they’ll play integral parts in PV’s bid for a section championship against Enterprise (19-11), which the Vikings (15-11) defeated twice in the regular season.

“It feels amazing (to go again),” Carlisle said. “I went my freshman year but that’s when I was brought up. It feels cool to actually be able to play in it with all my best friends. It’s going to be great.”

The Vikings’ last section title win, also against Enterprise, took place on the same Cowan Gym floor at Butte College.

“The atmosphere is surreal,” Paddock said. “No matter what happens, when you’re at the college playing for a section title it’s just crazy.”

Like PV, Durham returns to the section championship after a one-year absence. To get there, the Trojans (19-6) came back from an 11-point halftime deficit against Trinity on Tuesday and swung the semifinal game by 21 points in the second half to win 63-53.

“I’m so happy for them. I think that they deserve to be here, and I think that second half proved they deserve it,” said Durham first-year head coach Alvyna Goodwin. “They’ve worked hard — and this is where they belong.”

Durham last won a section title in 2018 — the Trojans’ fifth in six years — and went on to win three straight CIF NorCal D-V games before falling to Lowell one game short of the state championship game.

Alison Smith, Karena Bryant and Karlee Potter saw time on that year’s team, and then-freshman Devani Sparks was also pulled up from the JV team, which Goodwin coached at the time.

This year’s team has been built on hard work, as Goodwin said, and chemistry, which has only improved throughout the season. They said Tuesday’s win was proof of those things in overcoming the early deficit.

“It’s just the fact that we have the team chemistry and can work really well together that makes us pull it off,” said Smith, now a senior.

Portola (28-3) won the Mountain Valley League, before defeating Biggs and Colusa in succession to reach the section championship game. Friday will be the first matchup between the two teams this season.

“From day one, we’ve told them that they are champions,” Goodwin said. “We believe that their athleticism and their drive can take them to unlimited places, and I think that they’ve shown that. In the last month or so, the end of league, they’ve really grown as individuals and as a team. I think that’s reflected on the court. They trust each other. They’ve learned how to play with each other and it’s brought us outstanding results.”